Take Me Away
by NuttyElla
Summary: Something's about to rock Jude's world, and no one knows where she'll end up. Or with who.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Jude." He nudged the inanimate person next to him with his elbow. "Jude! Snap out of it! They're calling you--you won! Now move, you gotta go accept your award!"

She still sat there, unmoving. She couldn't believe it. She, Jude Harrison, the punk rock princess that was still pining for her blue-eyed prince, had just won a Grammy. And not just any Grammy--not that she'd ever refuse one--but the award for Best Album of the Year. How the hell did that happen? She didn't even know how she got nominated in the first place! But she did, somehow. The words were still ringing in her head in a familiar voice...

_"And the Grammy for Album of the Year goes to...JUDE HARRISON!" _And then there was the eruption of applause and whistles and screams, but she didn't hear any of that. All she was thinking about was hearing her name..._her _name, being announced as the person that won. She actually won. It was finally starting to click in her mind.

_Holy fucking shit! I just won a Grammy, a **Grammy!**_

Before she knew it, a face was nearing hers. A kiss was placed on her cheek, although dangerously close to her lips in her opinion. As he pulled away, she recognized the person as Tommy. If she was asked to describe Tommy in one word, she knew exactly what she'd say_...forbidden_. But that didn't stop her from hoping.

Realizing that Tommy had just kissed her and that she had pretty much missed it because she was completely zoned out in another world kind of pissed Jude off, but it definitely brought her attention back to the present.

"So there is life in there," Tommy teased her, and then added with a smirk, "I figured that would get your attention."

"You're full of it, Quincy," she replied with a smile. But the full realization of what had just happened to her finally hit Jude, and her eyes began to water.

"Damnit," she whispered under her breath as she tried to stop the tears from flowing down her face.

Of course, Tommy noticed this and stood up to give her a hug...something she'd never get tired of as long as it was from Little Tommy Q.

"Hey, girl," he whispered as he wrapped his arms around her. "Don't cry."

"I'm not," she replied softly but in vain as the first tear cascaded down her smooth cheek.

Tommy pulled back a little bit and wiped the tear away with his thumb, careful not to smudge her make-up too much. "You and I both know how much you deserve this. Everyone does. Now go up there and get your award, Jude, you've earned it. And don't forget to smile."

Jude smiled and laughed quietly at this. Taking a deep breath, she took a step away from Tommy as she straightened her dress out. "Thanks, Tommy."

"Anytime, girl. Now go!"

She flashed him a quick smile before turning around to head for the stage. However, she'd only taken a few steps before she turned around again to see him still standing there, watching her. "You haven't seen my mom and my sister yet, have you?"

"Sorry, Jude, can't say that I have. I'm sure they're around here somewhere, though, and that they'll come see you once you accept your award."

Jude's face fell a little at his response, but she recovered quickly and plastered on her smile again before giving him a nod and turning back around.

"What's going on, Shorty? You get lost or something?" Shay's voice boomed through the speakers. Of all the ironies in life, he was the one presenting this award. Jude's smile became a little more sincere as she hurried towards the stage, although not too fast so she wouldn't trip and fall flat on her face. Been there, done that..._stupid heels _she thought as the memory made its way from the dusty depths of her mind to her foremost thought.

Reaching the steps, Jude quickly shoved the not-so-fond memory from her mind and focused all of her attention on making it up the stairs safely and without any humiliation on her part. Achieving her goal, Jude smiled warmly at Shay as he came towards her to give her a congratulatory hug. However, he decided to take it a little further and picked her up and spun her around, making her laugh as her dress floated around gracefully.

It took them a year, but Jude and Shay had finally mended fences. They were friends, although not that close because Shay was continually traveling around the world on tours that Darius had set up for him. Still, it was nice to have one less person that you were supposed to be mad at.

Shay finally set her down, gently, and held onto her arms while she regained her balance and her breath. She leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek before he reached around and presented her with her award.

Despite what she had told herself before she got up here, Jude began to tear up. But before she could do anything about it, Shay was handing the award to her, it was actually _in her hands._ He gave her another smile along with, "Congratulations, Shorty, you deserve it," before he exited the stage, leaving Jude alone with the trophy, the microphone, and the crowd.

Another deep breath and she reached for the microphone, ready to begin the cliché, teary-eyed speech...and who was she to break tradition?

xxxxx

Still in a daze, Jude returned to her table with award in hand. She received several hugs from people before resuming her seat next to Tommy, whose eyes were shining with pride, elation, and...something else.

"You did great, Jude, you really did."

"Thanks," was her simple reply.

Tommy sensed that Jude needed a couple of minutes, just to let it all soak in, and that's exactly what she did. Jude just looked around and absorbed everything she was feeling, hearing, and seeing. She knew that later she'd want to come back to this moment, and she wanted to remember as much as she could.

Eventually she sighed and turned her head towards Tommy, giving him a simple, content smile. He recognized it as the sign that she was ready to come back to the real world, at least for a little while.

Suddenly remembering something, Tommy spoke. "Hey, um, while you were up there giving your speech your purse vibrated, so I'm assuming you missed a call. I didn't know how you'd feel if I dug through your bag to answer it, since I know how touchy girls are about that kind of stuff."

Jude laughed, while Tommy secretly reveled in the sound of it. "You know I'm not like most girls, Tommy, so I really wouldn't have minded. But thanks for respecting my stuff, anyway."

She grabbed her small purse and located her phone inside of it. Flipping it open and seeing a missed call alert, Jude frowned when she didn't recognize the number. A little confused, she hit send to return the call and waited for someone to answer.


	2. Chapter 2

Just an FYI, I'm probably not gonna have any author's notes unless there's something specific I want to mention or point out. And I forgot a disclaimer, so this one counts for the whole story. And don't expect updates to be as often as this one. I started this story on another site so I have this written, but as of right now this is the most current chatper.

xx

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Instant Star...if I did, do you really think there would be a six year age difference? I also do not own any songs I may use in this story, although I do own any new characters and the plot.

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**Chapter 2**

_"The award for Best Record of the Year goes to_...(Fill in the artist of your favorite song here...my pick is Alexz Johnson, hehe)!"

As the thunderous applause broke out once again, no one noticed as one girl remained immobile, her face an ashen white. Blue eyes stared straight ahead, unseeing, as the cell phone in her hand began to fall.

Actually, one person did notice the change in her demeanor as she listened to her phone. Reacting quickly, Tommy caught Jude's cell phone before it crashed into the floor and broke. He brought it up to his ear and spoke.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" Never taking his eyes off of Jude, Tommy conversed with the stranger on the other end of the line, trying to figure out what had happened to cause Jude's...reaction. His heart felt like it was a sponge being squeezed by a fist as he listened to the words of the unknown man and the trauma that was about to rock Jude's world, along with his own.

"Okay, we're on our way."

Tommy gently closed the phone, disconnecting the call. Jude still hadn't moved from her position; she remained frozen in a position of shock.

He sighed--this was bad, really bad. Actually, Tommy didn't even know the extent of it, all he knew was that it was just _bad_.

Steeling himself for whatever may come, Tommy stuffed Jude's phone into her purse. He then turned to face the now-brunette beauty seated next to him.

"Jude?" She didn't respond to his gentle coaxing voice. "Jude? Are you ok?"

Jude blinked, probably for the first time in several minutes, before locking her eyes with Tommy's.

"Am I ok? Did you _seriously_ just ask me that?"

Tommy probably would've smiled if he didn't know that smiling was probably one of the worst things he could do right now. Even in a crisis, Jude never lost her sarcasm.

However, he knew that her sarcasm was mostly a cover up for the fear and worry she felt, so he spoke in a neutral tone. "Ok, stupid question. But do you want a ride to the hospital? I know you came in a limo but it'll probably take a while to find it and get it here. I parked the Cobra myself so we can get out of here quickly if you want."

Jude merely nodded and said a simple "Ok" as she tried to stand on her shaky legs. _Stupid heels..._she thought. Once the Jell-O feeling had left her legs, Tommy and Jude began to walk towards the exit. Before they had gotten, however, a voice called out to them from the table that they had just left.

"Tommy, man, where're you guys going so soon? This thing isn't even halfway over yet," Kwest yelled at them above the noise.

Tommy turned around at the sound of his best friend's voice and made eye contact with him. Understanding each other with their eyes was something Kwest and Tommy had mastered years before, and it didn't fail them now. Kwest could tell it was serious, so he just nodded when Tommy replied, "I'll call you later." Something bad was going down, and he knew Tommy would tell him when it was the right time.

Jude and Tommy resumed their trek towards the door, but once again Kwest's voice halted them.

"Yo, Jude, what about your award?" He asked, gesturing at the trophy sitting on the table.

In an obviously distracted voice, Jude told Kwest, "Take care of it for me, will you?" Without even waiting for a reply, she continued for the exit, determined to not be stopped again.

Reaching the doors, Jude shoved them open like she was about to kick some ass and walked through, Tommy right behind her. But as soon as the doors shut, Jude's legs became wobbly again so she bent down to remove her shoes, hoping that would help her walk to be more stable. After straightening back up again, though, it soon became apparent to her that it wasn't helping.

Tommy had always been quick, but this time he just wasn't quick enough. Jude's knees gave out and she collapsed on the floor, shivering. He quickly rushed over to her, not knowing what he could really do, just knowing that he had to try something to help her.

"Jude? Jude, talk to me, please."

She shifted and managed to look at Tommy, fear and pain from what might be coming evident in her eyes.

"Tommy, I'm so scared..."

He watched her, hating what she was going through. What she was going to face was probably going to be horrible, but not knowing what it was...that was even worse. "I know, girl, so am I."

Jude took a deep breath and Tommy almost smiled again as he noticed the slight hardening of her chin He knew that she would always be one to fight and not let anything get the best of her.

Tommy was ready to get lost in a memory about her when she attempted to stand again. Jude almost made it, but her legs still weren't cooperating and she began to decline towards the floor again.

But this time, Tommy was quick enough. He moved forward and caught Jude in his arms like you would cradle a baby. She exhaled a breath and connected her eyes with him, silently conveying her thoughts. As with Kwest, Tommy understood her eyes and straightened up with Jude still in his arms. With Jude's shoes dangling in her hand as her dress fluttered around her bare feet, Tommy and Jude left the luxurious building to the amused and confused stares of the security guards and ushers.

The two continued through the parking lot, still in the same position, until Tommy reached his car. Since it was a convertible, Tommy didn't bother setting Jude down and opening the door for her, he merely lifted her over the side of the car and gently laid her in the passenger's seat. Taking a nervous breath and running his hand through his hair, Tommy made his way over to the driver's side and got in.

He stuck the key in the ignition, but didn't start the car. Instead, Tommy turned so he was facing Jude, whose only movement since being placed in the car was to buckle her seat belt. He reached across the gear shift and grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze, letting her know that he was there for her. Letting go of it, he couldn't believe how cold her small hand was. It felt like ice, too close to how she was acting...frozen. Without a word, Tommy turned the key and took off in the direction of Memorial Hospital.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

They were about still several minutes away from their final destination, and neither had spoken a word. Tommy had switched on the radio earlier, and it was currently playing one of Jude's favorite songs, "Nothing to Lose" by Billy Talent. Tommy knew from experience that when it came on the radio, Jude usually rocked out to it and sang along. Tonight, she barely even acknowledged that it was playing. Jude's behavior wasn't completely unexpected, but it still worried Tommy.

Meanwhile, Jude was staring out, watching the trees, buildings, and whatever else was there fly by. The words from the mystery man on the phone, Officer Steele, kept replaying in her head.

_"Hello, I'm Officer Steele. Is this Jude Harrison?"_

_"Yes...but I'm confused as to how you got this number and why you're calling."_

_"That's understandable, and I'll explain in a minute. Are you sitting down right now, Ms. Harrison?"_

_"Yes, I am," she answered, although still in an utterly confused voice, but growing more worried by the second. _Why do I need to be sitting down? _she wondered._

_"Ok. There was an accident this evening involving a Victoria and Sadie Harrison. I'm assuming they're relatives of yours?"_

_"My mother and sister. What happened? Are they alright?"_

_"I think it'd be better if you came down to the hospital so the doctors and I can explain everything in person..." That was when she dropped the phone, not wanting to know any more._

Tommy chanced a glance at Jude as they reached a stop sign, wondering what was going through her mind. But he knew better than to pry, she'd tell him when she was ready. After a moment he checked the other roads, and finding them clear he began to pull forward.

Out of nowhere a car came speeding from the road on the right, and it was obvious that he didn't plan on stopping at the octagonal red sign. The Cobra was pulled out about halfway as the car grew nearer and nearer, a collision seeming inevitable. By now Jude had heard the sound of the approaching car and looked up, right into the blare of the oncoming headlights.

Tommy wasn't sure whether he should slam on the brakes or the gas. This was the first time his instincts had failed, with a car of all things. His brain appeared to have shut down when he saw Jude illuminated in the headlights. That car was going way too fast now, it wouldn't have time to stop, and Jude was on the right side, directly in its path. She would be the one to take the force of the impact. The Cobra...it was a nice, fast, flashy car, but it definitely wasn't ranked very high for safety, and it was a convertible for goodness' sake! All Tommy could see was Jude...and the car that was heading straight for her.

The reckless driver of the car seemed to have reached the same conclusion as Tommy, that there wasn't enough time to slam on the brakes and stop before hitting the Cobra. He needed to come up with something, and fast.

Tommy watched helpless as the car grew even nearer to Jude. He wanted to do something, anything, to stop this from happening, but he knew there was nothing he could do now except brace himself for the impact.

There might have been nothing Tommy could do, but the driver wasn't giving up just yet. He saw the stricken face of a young, pretty brunette girl in the passenger's side of the car, and knew what he had to do. It might not work, but he at least had to try, for all of their sakes. If he rolled his car and got hurt, or worse, so be it, he was the one that had caused this situation after all. Anger and hurt and betrayal were no excuse for reckless driving and endangering the lives of innocent people.

Without a second thought, the driver turned the wheel, hoping there was still enough distance between the two cars for his plan to work.

Jude squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the hit she knew was coming. After a moment, though, she opened her eyes. There were no headlights in front of her. There was no car in front of her. Just a dark, deserted road.

At the sound of a crash, instinct told her to turn around and look. But she didn't. Instead, she followed the five-year-old inside of her and pulled her knees up to her chest and her legs in as tight as they could go. Shivering, but not from the cold, she just sat there cradling her head in her hands, telling herself to just breath.

Releasing an unconscious breath, Tommy snapped back to the real world as fresh air entered his lungs. Looking over, he saw that Jude was still sitting there, unharmed. She was safe. He whipped around when he heard a crash and saw the rear end of the previously oncoming car smash into a tree off the road.

Without thinking, Tommy quickly jumped out of the Viper and ran towards the vehicle. Even if the driver was a moron and had almost gotten them all killed, they weren't dead now and his car was currently smushed against a tree with him still in it. Tommy still had no idea how this guy had managed to not flip his car over when he swerved to avoid the Cobra, but somehow he had.

Reaching the car, which he now recognized as a BMW 6 Series Convertible, Tommy jogged over to the driver's seat and peered through the windshield, unsure of what he would find.

Mitch felt like he had just been hit by a sledgehammer. In actuality, he realized, it was the steering wheel. As Mitch was trying to gain his bearings, he felt something warm trickle down his face. Reaching up to his forehead, he realized that his head was cut and that he was bleeding. _Great, what a perfect way to end the perfect day_, he thought sarcastically. A movement outside of the car refocused his attention. _But apparently it's not over yet._

A face appeared in the window, and Mitch recognized its owner as the one and only Little Tommy Q, thanks to his little sister's obsession several years ago. _You've gotta be kidding me..._ Mitch raised his arm and waved, letting the ex-boybander know that he was fine.

With a sigh, Mitch grabbed the door handle and exited his now worthless BMW. Seeing the damage, he clenched his teeth and managed to keep the many expletives that came to mind to himself.

"You ok?" An oddly familiar voice spoke.

"Yeah, fine, thanks. Too bad I can't say the same about my car."

Tommy grimaced as he looked at the car, or at least what was left of it. He'd been there and done that a few years before, actually right before he'd met Jude, so he could share this guy's pain. Of course, since that event Tommy was a much more cautious driver, especially with passengers, particularly ones with brown hair and amazing voices. The darkness had engulfed everything, so Tommy walked a little closer to this guy that had just endangered Jude's life, wondering what he'd find.

The guy looked to Tommy to be in his very early twenties with short, dark brown hair, similar to his own. He was a couple of inches taller than Tommy, but other than that they were pretty similar physically. The mystery guy walked towards Tommy and extended his hand.

"I'm Mitch Graye."

Taking his hand, Tommy replied, "Tom Quincy."

"Are you guys ok?" Hearing Mitch's question, Tommy didn't understand why he wasn't broiling with anger. This guy had practically crashed into them! He could've seriously hurt Jude! Mitch Graye was a reckless idiot...so why wasn't Tommy royally pissed right now?

"Fine, I think. You did scare the shit out of us, though, but physically we're fine. But I think that cut on your head is worse than you think; it looks like it could use some stitches. We're on our way to the hospital, if you want a ride." And now he was offering the guy a ride? Apparently when Jude was going through something, calm and sympathy were key parts of Tommy's demeanor.

Mitch turned and looked at his car. "What about my car? I can't just leave it, isn't that like leaving the scene of a crime or something?"

"It's ok, you can leave if you have to take care of an injury. We just have to call it in."

Mitch shot Tommy a questioning glance.

"Let's just say I did this a few years ago and have some experience." Mitch nodded, accepting his answer. "So do you want to come?"

"Yeah, if it's no problem for you." Actually, the cut on Mitch's forehead was starting to sting and his head was ready to explode, so he was completely ready to accept a ride to the hospital in order to get some painkillers.

"Ok, then. You need anything from your car?" Tommy asked as he whipped out his cell phone to call the Mounties.

"Nah, I'm good."

"All right, just let me finish this call and we'll get going," Tommy said as he held the phone up to his ear.


	4. Chapter 4

Ok, so I officially suck, and I'm very sorry. I'm a huge procrastinator and things just got hectic for me. This is the very latest that I have written, I'm not quite as organized as a lot of the other authors on here who have stuff prewritten. Anyways, I won't bore you with a long AN because I've definitely made you wait long enough. I just hope people will still read this! Pleae R&R, even though I don't deserve it.

xx

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**Chapter 4**

Once Tommy finished the call, the two men made their way back to the Cobra, which was still sitting in the middle of the 4-way intersection. Luckily, there was no one driving this late at night in such a remote area. Still, Tommy silently berated himself for being so irresponsible and careless and leaving Jude in such evident danger, especially when she was in such a fragile state. He increased his pace as his concern for Jude began to grow. Tommy was clueless as to how Jude was reacting to everything that had just happened. She could be hysterical, or she could've just shut down completely. He had no idea, but he intended to find out.

As they neared the car, Tommy held up a hand towards Mitch and looked him directly in the eye, signaling for him to stop. Mitch merely nodded at the silent communication, understanding that Tommy needed to check on the girl before he met her, and halted his progression towards the thankfully unscathed Cobra. Too bad he couldn't say the same thing about his car.

Tommy continued his trek towards his car, but more importantly towards an award-winning artist of his that was still seated inside of it. Instead of getting in the driver's seat and moving the car, Tommy walked around until he was standing by the passenger's side. He figured that this place was pretty much deserted and since no one had come this way so far, he doubted someone would in the next few minutes.

The ex-boybander turned his attention to Jude. At first glance she appeared to be entranced by something located directly in front of her, but upon closer inspection Tommy realized that Jude wasn't really seeing anything at all; she was in a daze.

Not quite sure what he should do, Tommy did the classic wave-your-hand-up-and-down-in-front-of-his/her-face.

No response.

Since movement didn't work, he decided to try sound. This time when Tommy put his hand before Jude's face, he slipped his thumb and middle finger together and snapped a couple of times.

Nothing.

Frustrated, Tommy couldn't figure out what to do to wake Jude up. After a minute of serious consideration, he finally came up with a solution to his problem. Tommy decided to revert back to his previous tactic of the night. It had worked earlier; why not give it a shot now?

In one graceful motion without the slightest hint of hesitation, Tommy bent his body and fused his lips with Jude's. When she didn't reciprocate anything upon the initial contact, Tommy decided he was going to have to get, um, a little creative.

He dragged his tongue across her smooth lips, asking to probe deeper. Instinctively, like a well-used reflex, Jude parted her lips. Tommy grasped the opportunity and plunged his tongue inside of her mouth and began to explore it, something he had only had the glorious privilege of doing twice before this. Once he got reacquainted, he let her have a turn. Jude's hand found a spot on the back of Tommy's neck, and his hand raked through her hair as the kiss became more heated, more urgent.

As he realized that Mitch was still waiting nearby--no doubt watching--Tommy felt a sharp, stinging pain on the side of his face. He recoiled in shock, eyes wide at what had just occurred.

Jude met Tommy's eyes as she spoke and he was surprised at the animosity he found in them, although it wasn't totally unexpected.

"Well, well, well, from the look on you face, I'd say that's the first time that's ever happened to you. But there's a first time for everything, right, Tommy?"

He just continued to gape at her, trying to accept the fact that Jude Harrison had just **slapped** him.

Jude released a mirthless chuckle. "You look like your dog ran away, Tommy."

"Jude, I can ex-" he tried to say but was abruptly cut off by a very irate brunette.

"What? Explain like you did the other two times? I think I've got it down by now. Don't bother to say it, I don't want any of this polluted air to be wasted on someone as pathetic as you."

As soon as the words came out of her mouth, Tommy winced, but Jude showed no emotion, other than the blatantly obvious anger.

"It's always the same with you! Every time something bad happens in my life, you think it's the perfect time to get out my heart and play with it. You toss it back and forth between your hands, throwing it hard, fast, up high, even under your leg. But you're such a heartless bastard that you don't pay enough attention--or maybe you just flat out don't care--and you drop it. And it breaks. Every. Single. Time. And you know what? The world is running out of super glue and duct tape. _I'm_ out of super glue and duct tape." She took a deep breath and looked Tommy square in the eye before finishing off her rant in a flat, indifferent tone. "So screw you. I'm done."

_Damnit, Quincy, you've done it again! Why? Why do you always do that to Jude? It's not fair, she deserves so much better...but she never gets it. All the guys she dates are jerks to her in the end. Shay, Jamie, Speed...Every guy she likes is a jerk to her, including me. So why did they do it? Why do I do it?_

Tommy and Jude remained motionless, each waiting for the other to break the silence. Tommy was completely speechless. What could he say to that? Jude, on the other hand, was still angry as hell but she pretended to dismiss the entire thing, seeing as how there were more important things to worry about at the moment besides her poor, tortured, unimportant heart.

"How's the guy? Is he ok?" Jude finally asked.

It took Tommy a minute to figure out what she was asking about, but he finally answered. "Yeah, he's fine, just a nasty cut on his forehead. The car's totaled, though."

"Ouch. That was a nice car."

Tommy couldn't believe how Jude's disposition had changed in the last couple of minutes. First she was biting his head off, now she was inquiring after the welfare of the guy who had almost crashed into them?

It was at that moment that Tom Quincy finally accepted the fact that he would never understand women.

"Oh, um, you know how I said he had that cut on his head? Well I offered to give him a ride to the hospital since we're going there anywhere. Is that okay with you?"

Tommy's mention of the hospital really sobered Jude up. She had forgotten about the phone call and her mom and sister...but now it all came painfully rushing back. Still, she decided to play her uneasiness off. "Tommy, in case you haven't noticed, your car only seats two people, not three."

"I know, I was just hoping we could find a way for all of us to fit. If you don't want to that's completely fine, I just thought we could try."

Jude sighed, contemplating her options. She really didn't want to squish three people into Tommy's tiny car, but she didn't want to leave the guy stranded out here all by himself, especially with a bad cut on his head. The answer was obvious to Jude, but she still wasn't thrilled with the situation.

"It's fine, we can fit. I'll just sit on the counsel since I'm probably the smallest and he can have my seat. Sound good?"

"Yeah. But you're sure you're okay with this, Jude? Seriously, if it'll make you uncomfortable or anything, just say the word and we're off, just the two of us."

"Seriously, I'm fine with it. Just get him over here so we can all get in and get to the hospital."

Tommy nodded and turned towards Mitch, waving him over.

Mitch walked over and as he got closer, he realized who the girl in the car was: Jude Harrison. He tried to hide the smirk on his face, since obviously he had seen and heard what had transpired between Jude and Tommy. Now he had to control the laughter that was threatening to spill forth. Mitch had read about these two in the tabloids a lot, and now he got to witness them together in action. This was turning into one hell of a night. First he learns that his girlfriend was cheating on him with his best friend. Then he almost crashes into two celebrities--one of whom was his now ex-girlfriend's idol. And those same two celebrities are giving him a ride to the hospital after he totaled his car. Mitch was just along for this one hell of a ride. What else could he do?

When Mitch reached the car, Tommy made a quick introduction.

"Jude, this is Mitch. Mitch, this is Jude."

They each stuck out a hand to shake, but Jude and Mitch were completely stunned at the shock that went up each of their arms when their hands touched. It was like a jolt of electricity, and both were unnerved as to what it could mean. They quickly released their hands, acting nonchalant towards what they had just experienced.

Tommy was slightly suspicious towards the greeting. He noticed the looks on their faces when their hands met, and he wasn't sure he liked it. Something was off. But he pretended to be completely oblivious, not wanting to make something out of nothing. It's not like he had the right to, anyway.

"Okay then, everyone ready to go?" Tommy questioned.

Jude and Mitch each nodded, but their eyes were locked on each other. Mitch saw sadness, anxiety, and fear in Jude's, and surprisingly, he wanted to get rid of it all. He wanted her eyes to sparkle with joy and laughter, even though he had just met her. When Jude looked into Mitch's eyes, she found a well full of anger, hurt, and betrayal. She wanted to know what caused it, and she didn't want it to be present in this stranger. She wanted to fix everything for him, so maybe at least one person on this planet could be happy.

Tommy merely watched the two staring at each other, trying to figure out what the hell was going on.


End file.
